1640 – Count John Drugeth X donated the land in Uzhhorod to the Society of Jesus. On August 31, 1640 a construction of the Jesuit college, school and church began. The construction continued in 1640-1644 under the supervision of the Rector György Dobronoki.

1732-1740 – Jesuits erected a new church (present cathedral) with two towers in the late baroque style on the site of the old church.

1771 – Canonization of the Mukachevo Greek Catholic Eparchy.

1772 – Enthronement of Bishop Andrej Bachynskyj (1772-1809), an outstanding figure of church and culture.

1773 – The activity of Jesuit Order in Uzhhorod was discontinued. The college was trans­ferred to the possession of the Austrian crown.

1775 March 1 – Empress MariaTheresa transferred the college and church to the Mukachevo Greek Catholic Eparchy to be used as the Bishop’s residence and cathedral.

1779 – The iconostasis created by Francis Fech was installed. The icons were painted by the Basilian monk Tadej Spalinskij.

1780 October 15 – Bishop Andrej Bachynskyj sanctified the cathedral. Since that time the former Uzhhorod Jesuit college has become the residence of the Mukachevo bishops. To commemorate this event, a marble plaque with deed by Empress Maria Theresa was placed on the external wall of the sanctuary.

1858 – The eparchial painter Ferdinand Vidra (1815-1879) executed the mural painting in the cathedral.

At the very beginning of the 20th century under Bishop Yulij Firtsak (1891-1914) the shape of the tops of the residence towers was changed from low semispherical to higher helmeted form.

1927 – Under Bishop Petro Gebej (1924-1931), artist Josyp Bokshaj (1891-1975) executed the mural painting in the bishop’s chapel and renovated them in 1942 under Bishop Alexander Stojka (1932-1943).

1938 – Majestic composition “Exaltation of the Holy Cross” was painted by Josyp Bokshaj on the cathedral fault.

1772-1947 – The crypt of the cathedral served as a burial place for the outstanding church figures. Among 70 personalities buried here were Bishops loann Bradach, Andrej Bachynskyj, Oleksij Povchij, Vasyl Popovych, Stefan Pankovych, Yulij Firtsak.

1947 October 31 – Theodore Romzha, Bishop of Mukachevo Greek Catholic Eparchy, was murdered by the agents of KGB.

1949 – Greek Catholic Church was suppressed by the Soviet government and clergymen were persecuted. The church continued its activity underground.

1991 October 10 – After the legalization of the Greek Catholic Church under Bishop loan Semedij the cathedral was returned to Mukachevo Greek Catholic Eparchy.

1998 June 3 – The burial place of Bishop Theodore Romzha was found in one of the bays of the crypt. On June 27, 2001 martyr Bishop Theodore was beatified by Pope John Paul II. On June 28, 2003 the relics of the Blessed Theodore Romzha were solemnly transferred to the cathedral.

In 2004 under Bishop Milan Šašik the process of the returning of the bishop’s residence premises to the Mukachevo Greek Catholic Eparchy was started. The exteriors of the cathedral and residence were repaired and the decorative plafonds in the residence halts were renovated. The wall painting in the bishop’s chapel was restored.

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Stages of reconstruction

1876-1878

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1846

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 1644

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On June 9, 1866 an extraordinary event took place near the village of Knyahynya – a large meteorite has fallen from the skies. The event unfolded between Stinka and Yavirnyk Ridges. Meteorite’s fiery ball appeared over the city Liptovsky Mikulas (Slovakia), flew in an easterly direction, and having broken the distance of over 200 km exploded near the village of Knyahynya at an altitude of 40 km.

A large area was subjected to a real “stone rain”. Stones were mainly found on the fields, roads, streets of villages Knyahynya, Zboy, Stuzhytsya. But mostly the fragments fell in the forest and were never found. There were very many pieces of meteorite scattered around. During the first few days, local residents collected over 60 fragments, whereas a total of up to 1200 fragments actually fell to the ground.

The largest piece of meteorite was found on a Stinka mountain slope in Chorni Mlaky Tract by a local man named Vasyl Kryvyanyk (according to witnesses of those events). A few days after the meteorite’s fall, he went to his hayfield and saw an unusual cavity. He dug up the soil (over 2 meters deep) and found a large fragment of a meteorite weighing 279 kg and 766 g.

Uzhanskyi County administration formed a special committee in order to study the meteorite phenomenon and collect meteorite fragments. Several days later a team of scientists arrived from Vienna and Budapest. They studied the place where the meteorite has fallen and recovered 72 more fragments with the total weight of about 46.7 kg. The search for meteorite fragments continued, and as of September 24,1866 they found pieces of total weight of 385.8 kg. According to the Museum of Natural History Vienna, the total weight of all meteorite fragments amounts to 500 kg. The pieces of Knyahynya meteorite are nowadays preserved in historic and natural history museums of 115 cities around the world.

A memorial sign was installed at the site were the largest meteorite fragment has fallen. An eco-trail to this site was also developed.

Source: Uzhanskyi national nature park

89000, Ukraine, Transcarpathian region, Veliky Berezny vil, Nezalezhnosti street, 7

Phone/fax: (03135) 2-10-37

e-mail: uzhanskij@gmail.com, web: www.unpp.com.ua

Defence fortification system “Arpad line” was built during Hungarian occupation of Easter Carpathians in 1943-1944’s to withstand the advancing Red Army. The end points of this line were Dukla Pass in the West and Yablunetsky Mountain Pass in the East, so the line stretched for almost 600 kilometres. The Arpad line was not continuous, and consisted of separate defence units. The strongpoints were scattered over the Carpathian Mountain Ridge as well as in Transcarpathian Lowland. Open firing points, trenches, and antitank obstacles were all part of fortification system.
While constructing the strongpoints, the Hungarian military engineers did their best to maximize the advantages of mountain relief. For instance, one of the strongpoints was installed in the narrowing of the Uzh River, thus it could completely block the traffic in Uzh Valley.
A powerful strongpoint was equipped in the Zhornavski Tract. On the slope of the mountain nine ferroconcrete structures were constructed, including machine gun points, artillery positions, shelters for soldiers, warehouses. The iron gate blocked the road, the river was barred with ferroconcrete pyramids and obstacles made from rails. Railway was also blocked by special barricades.
Some walls and ceilings of long-term defence points are up to 1,5 meters thick. Mountain slope is covered with a network of trenches and open firing points. Warfare never reached these fortifications. During the post-war years they were damaged by the Soviet troopers. Nowadays the ruins of concrete structures are surrounded by wild nature. The Tract is now home to an eco-trail. You are welcome to walk the trail and re-visit the remains of military fortifications.

Source: Uzhanskyi national nature park

89000, Ukraine, Transcarpathian region, Veliky Berezny vil, Nezalezhnosti street, 7

Phone/fax: (03135) 2-10-37

e-mail: uzhanskij@gmail.com, web: www.unpp.com.ua

From Volosyanka to Uzhotskyi Pass the builders had to overcome a height difference of 362 metre so the road was developed into the serpentines along the mountain slopes, overgrown with forest over deep valleys with long bridges, and within seven tunnels with the total length of 2271 meter In order to support the most complicated sections, high retaining walls were installed, mountai slopes were cut deep, and high bridges were engineered in order to achieve nearly 900 meters of pass’s height.

During World War I the railway was severely damaged due to fierce battles, which were carried out t win the Uzhotskyi Pass. From November 24, 1914 to January 26, 1915, Russian troops held the Pas and at the beginning of 1915 they were able to penetrate up to the village of Zabrid. During the retreat of the Austro-Hungarian army a small bridge was destroyed near the village of Shcherbyn the middle and two edge parts of the bridge were torn down. As of January 26,1915, the pass w; held by the Austro-Hungarian troops while the fights went on. On May 8,1915 the Russians left the positions in Carpathians, Taking into consideration the importance of this line of railway, a ring road with a small bridge was built over the valley.

Source: Uzhanskyi national nature park

89000, Ukraine, Transcarpathian region, Veliky Berezny vil, Nezalezhnosti street, 7

Phone/fax: (03135) 2-10-37

e-mail: uzhanskij@gmail.com, web: www.unpp.com.ua

St.Michael’s Church in the village of Uzhok, built in 1745, its bell tower dating back to 19th century. The church is an example of Boyko wooden folk architecture with some Lemko architecture elements.

St.Basil’s church in the village of Sil, built in the village of Syanky in 1703 and transferred to Sil in 1777. During repairs of 1834-1894 the appearance of the church has undergone major changes. The Church of The Blessed Virgin Mary Protection in Kostryno-built in 1645 in the village of Syanky and in 1703 moved to present location. In 1761 a tower was constructed over “babynets”, which became higher than the central hipped roof. Since then the appearance of the church has not changed.

Original wooden churches of 18th century have also been preserved in the villages of Husnyi and Sukhyi. They were usually built in picturesque hilly areas and thus constitute a significant landscape and cultural value, the wooden churches look so beautiful, their structures look like some places in a videogame. Traditional ornamental trees near the temples were long-living species, like small-leaf linden and ash trees. Priests and religious leaders were often buried near the temples.

Source: Uzhanskyi national nature park

89000, Ukraine, Transcarpathian region, Veliky Berezny vil, Nezalezhnosti street, 7

Phone/fax: (03135) 2-10-37

e-mail: uzhanskij@gmail.com, web: www.unpp.com.ua

Pikuy (1408,3 m) – is the highest mountain peak of Verkhovyna Dividing Ridge and the Beskids, as well as the highest geographic point of Lviv region. It is located on the border of Lviv and Zakarpattya region.The high forest bound is at 1200-1250 m above sea level, which allows the tourists to observe wonderful landscapes and special flora within a relatively short distance. There is a column-obelisk made of stone on the top of the mountain. People say that it was installed in 1935 by the residents of the village of Husnyi to honour T.Masaryk, the first President of Czechoslovakia (before the war this village together with whole of Zakarpattya was part of Czechoslovakia). Pikuy is accessible via a tourist route, which starts at Uzhotskyi Pass.

Mountain pasture Rivna (Runa) – mountainous massif within Perechyn and Velykyi Bereznyi districts of Zakarpattya region. The massif is located in the western part of Polonynskyi Ridge, between Lyutyanka, Shypit, and Turytsya Rivers. Rivna mountain pasture is a wide sloping ridge covered by meadows and mainly beech forests. Massif has a few noticeable peaks – Polonyna Runa (1479 m, northwest), Menchul (1295 m, south), Runa-Plai (1227 m, southeast). Rivna is home to ornithological reserve “Sokolovi Skeli” as well as Reserve “Turye-Polyana” (southeast) and “Shypit” Reserve.

Ostra – second highest peak after Polonyna Runa located within Velykyi Bereznyi districts (1405 m above sea level). Mountain peak is characterized by three little peaks, which add to its picturesque beauty and make it recognisable from all viewpoints. Steep slopes visually increase the height of the mountain, which makes it even more beautiful.

Source: Uzhanskyi national nature park

89000, Ukraine, Transcarpathian region, Veliky Berezny vil, Nezalezhnosti street, 7

Phone/fax: (03135) 2-10-37

e-mail: uzhanskij@gmail.com, web: www.unpp.com.ua

Source: Uzhanskyi national nature park

89000, Ukraine, Transcarpathian region, Veliky Berezny vil, Nezalezhnosti street, 7

Phone/fax: (03135) 2-10-37

e-mail: uzhanskij@gmail.com, web: www.unpp.com.ua

Source: Uzhanskyi national nature park

89000, Ukraine, Transcarpathian region, Veliky Berezny vil, Nezalezhnosti street, 7

Phone/fax: (03135) 2-10-37

e-mail: uzhanskij@gmail.com, web: www.unpp.com.ua

Mineral springs of Uzhanskyi NNP (village of Sil)

There is a range of mineral springs of various chemical compositions at the national park. Generally the springs are carbonaceous mineral waters – sodium chloride and bicarbonate calcium water with additional magnesium ferrum, barium, and arsenium. 

Source: Uzhanskyi national nature park

89000, Ukraine, Transcarpathian region, Veliky Berezny vil, Nezalezhnosti street, 7

Phone/fax: (03135) 2-10-37

e-mail: uzhanskij@gmail.com, web: www.unpp.com.ua

The area of the park was a place where the war was fought from September 1914 to May 1915. Main fights took place around Uzhotskyi Pass and the mountains in the northern part of the park. There is a WWI cemetery (and a memorial) at the Uzhotskyi Pass – 363 Russian and Austro-Hungarian soldiers are buried there. There is another WWI cemetery at the Cheremkha mountain (1130 m), where over 650 soldiers (primarily Hungarian) rest in peace. In total there are over 20 cemeteries and there are also some wartime graves located at village cemeteries.

Source: Uzhanskyi national nature park

89000, Ukraine, Transcarpathian region, Veliky Berezny vil, Nezalezhnosti street, 7

Phone/fax: (03135) 2-10-37

e-mail: uzhanskij@gmail.com, web: www.unpp.com.ua